Role of Food Digestion and Gastrointestinal System in the Nutritional, Functional and Health Properties of Food Bioactives

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (19 February 2024) | Viewed by 5290

Special Issue Editors

College of Food Science, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China
Interests: fermentation; gut microbiota; milk bioactives
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Guest Editor
College of Food Science, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China
Interests: protein; fermented food; bioactive peptide; probiotics; biological activity

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food Bioactives have recently received significant attention because of their positive effects on health beyond nutrition property. Food Bioactives usually include polysaccharides, polyphenols, carotenoids, polypeptides, fiber, prebiotics, essential oils, etc. Research shows that those bioactives protect us from numerous health problems, help improve vision, prevent diabetes and obesity, manage blood pressure, protect against cardiovascular disease, lower cholesterol and possibly fight cancer and slow tumor growth. However, these ‘super healthy effects’ are declined by the digestion and gastrointestinal system and, therefore, the actual benefits are minor. It is challenging to establish an effective delivery system by scientific means that maintains those benefits and how effective the foods are in justifying any health claim. Furthermore, some food bioactives may be digested and generate more functional metabolites, impact gut microbiota, regulate immune activity, etc.

All manuscripts should include, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • The role of delivery system in food bioactive properties.
  • The role of food digestion and gastrointestinal system in stability of food bioactive.
  • The impact of bioactive on the digestion and gastrointestinal system.

Dr. Lili Zhang
Dr. Shuang Zhang
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • digestion
  • gastrointestinal
  • bioactive
  • functional properties
  • health properties
  • gut microbiology

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 6242 KiB  
Article
Streptococcus thermophilus JM905—Strain Carbon Source Utilization and Its Fermented Milk Metabolic Profile at Different Fermentation Stages
by Yu Li, Ye Wang, Baolei Li, Baochao Hou, Weilian Hung, Jian He, Yujun Jiang, Yu Zhang and Chaoxin Man
Foods 2023, 12(19), 3690; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12193690 - 8 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1361
Abstract
The metabolic utilization of different carbon sources by Streptococcus thermophilus JM905(S. thermophilus JM905) was determined using a high-throughput microbial phenotyping system, and changes in fermentation characteristics of S. thermophilus JM905 fermented milk were investigated at different fermentation periods, with changes in pH, [...] Read more.
The metabolic utilization of different carbon sources by Streptococcus thermophilus JM905(S. thermophilus JM905) was determined using a high-throughput microbial phenotyping system, and changes in fermentation characteristics of S. thermophilus JM905 fermented milk were investigated at different fermentation periods, with changes in pH, water-holding capacity, viscosity, nuisance odor, and viable bacteria count being used to define the fermentation characteristics of the strain. Changes in the key metabolites, 2-hydroxybutyric acid, folic acid, L-lactic acid, D-glycerol-D-galactose-heptanol, (R)-leucine, L-aspartic acid, L-proline, D-arginine, L-isoleucine, hydra starch, L-lysine, L-tryptophan, and D-galactose, were clarified. Correspondingly, the fermented milk protein, amino acid, and fermented milk fat quality nutrient contents were determined to be 3.78 ± 0.054 g per 100 g, 3.405 ± 0.0234 g per 100 mL, and 0.161 ± 0.0030 g per 100 g, respectively. This study addressed strain carbon source utilization, changes in fermentation characteristics and metabolites during fermentation, with the aim of investigating the link between fermentation characteristics and metabolite quality components of Streptococcus thermophilus JM905 and its fermented milk with fermentation potential and to provide a useful reference for the screening of superior fermentation strains. Full article
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14 pages, 3008 KiB  
Article
Effect of Digestion on Ursolic Acid Self-Stabilized Water-in-Oil Emulsion: Role of Bile Salts
by Yumeng Yan, Yugang Liu, Chaoxi Zeng and Huiping Xia
Foods 2023, 12(19), 3657; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12193657 - 3 Oct 2023
Viewed by 998
Abstract
Exploring the effect of bile salts on the properties of emulsion carriers containing hydrophobic bioactive compounds is particularly critical to understanding the stability and bioavailability of these hydrophobic bioactive compounds in the digestive process. In this study, the effects of bile salts on [...] Read more.
Exploring the effect of bile salts on the properties of emulsion carriers containing hydrophobic bioactive compounds is particularly critical to understanding the stability and bioavailability of these hydrophobic bioactive compounds in the digestive process. In this study, the effects of bile salts on the stability and digestive characteristics of the ursolic acid (UA) self-stabilized water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion were investigated via static and dynamic (with or without enzyme) in vitro simulated digestive systems. The results showed that under the static system, the basic conditions had less interference, while the bile salts had a significant effect on the appearance and microstructure of the emulsion. The primary mechanism of emulsion instability is hydrophobic binding and depletion flocculation. Under the dynamic condition, it was found that the low concentrations of bile salts can promote the release amount and the rate of free fatty acids via displacement, while high concentrations of bile salts inhibit the decomposition of lipid, which may be related to the secondary coverage formed at the interface by the bile salts. These findings provide a theoretical basis for understanding the digestive behavior of the UA emulsion and its interaction with bile salts, which are conducive to developing and designing new emulsions to improve the bioaccessibility of UA. Full article
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13 pages, 7133 KiB  
Article
Screening of Bifidobacteria with Probiotic Potential from Healthy Infant Feces by Using 2′-Fucosyllactose
by Gongsheng Zhang, Hui Sun, Zihe Xu, Ze Tan, Lihong Xiao, Mingxue He, Jiaqi Shang, Anna N. Tsapieva and Lili Zhang
Foods 2023, 12(4), 858; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12040858 - 17 Feb 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2420
Abstract
Using 2′-fucosyllactose (2′-FL) as the sole carbon source can be an efficient way to screen bifidobacteria with superior probiotic capabilities since 2′-FL is a key element in promoting the growth of intestinal bifidobacteria in newborns. This approach was used in this work to [...] Read more.
Using 2′-fucosyllactose (2′-FL) as the sole carbon source can be an efficient way to screen bifidobacteria with superior probiotic capabilities since 2′-FL is a key element in promoting the growth of intestinal bifidobacteria in newborns. This approach was used in this work to screen eight bifidobacteria strains, including one strain of Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis BI_Y46 and seven strains of Bifidobacterium bifidum (BB_Y10, BB_Y30, BB_Y39, BB_S40, BB_H4, BB_H5 and BB_H22). Studies on their probiotic properties showed that BI_Y46 had a unique morphology with pilus-like structure, a high resistance to bile salt stimulation and a potent inhibitory action on Escherichia coli ATCC 25922. Similarly, BB_H5 and BB_H22 produced more extracellular polysaccharides and had a higher protein content than other strains. In contrast, BB_Y22 displayed considerable auto-aggregation activity and a high resistance to bile salt stimulation. Interestingly, BB_Y39 with weak self-aggregation ability and acid resistance had very excellent bile salt tolerance, extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) production and bacteriostatic ability. In conclusion, 2′-FL was used as sole carbon source to identify eight bifidobacteria with excellent probiotic properties. Full article
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